Naaz Joshi is a transgender international beauty queen, trans rights activist and motivational speaker. He was born as a boy named Aijya Joshi. His close ones also call him Charu. She is known as the first transgender international beauty queen from India.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Naaz Joshi was born on Monday, 31 December 1984 (age 36 years; as in 2021) in New Delhi. His zodiac sign is Capricorn.
Naaz Joshi in childhood
He holds a foundation degree from St. Joseph’s Academy. She studied Design at Pearl Academy, Knitwear Design and Technology at NIFT, Aviation/Airway Management and Operations at Frankfinn Institute of Air Hostess and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in International Marketing from the Institute of Management Technology, Hyderabad. When Naz was in school and her male teachers saw her behaving like a girl, they taught her to behave like a boy. His classmates used to make fun of him. When Naz turned seven years old, she was sent to a relative’s house. He did not allow Naaz to study and always made him do household work. Naaz started working at a restaurant so that he could raise money for his studies. She went to school in the morning and worked at a dhaba in the afternoon. When Naaz turned eleven, she was gang-raped by her cousin and five other men. His uncle asked him not to tell this to anyone. Later she met another transgender woman who told her that Naaz was a little different from others and society was not ready to accept her. The woman offered her work as a bar dancer and Naaz left the dhaba job and started working in the bar to support herself. When she turned eighteen, she met her cousin Viveka Babaji, who was a famous Mauritian model at that time. Viveka assures Naaz that she will bear all the expenses of his studies. In 1998, Naaz completed her studies and to pursue further education, she joined the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) to study fashion design. There he worked hard and topped all the semesters. She was a bright student and during her campus placement, she got the opportunity to work with famous designers Ritu Kumar and Ritu Beri. He had to face a lot of problems at the workplace. His colleagues used to call him by different names. The year 2013 was very important for Naaz’s life. She went for gender reassignment surgery in 2013.
Naaz Joshi before and after sex change surgery
He needed a huge amount of money for the operation. To earn money fast, Naaz started working as a sex worker. She went to the hospital alone for the operation. Talking about his surgery in an interview, he said,
I was an introvert and would cry easily when people made fun of me. I have learned to face situations with courage. “I don’t tolerate ridicule or teasing.”
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 10″
Hair Color: Black
Eye colour: black
Body Measurements (Approx): 32-38-38
Family
parents and siblings
Naaz Joshi was born to a Muslim mother and his father was a Hindu Punjabi (his parents’ names are not known). She has one brother and one sister (the names of her siblings are not known).
Naaz Joshi with his father
Naaz Joshi with his mother
Naaz Joshi with his sister
husband and children
Naaz married in May 2019 (her husband’s name is not known). They were married for some time and later got divorced. They adopted a baby girl in 2018 and named her Manikarnika and in 2020 they adopted another baby girl named Sharanya Joshi.
Naaz Joshi with her husband
Naaz Joshi with his elder daughter Manikarnika
Naaz Joshi’s younger daughter Sharanya
livelihood
modeling
Naaz Joshi started her career in 2016 when she met photographer Rishi Taneja who decided to make a documentary on Naaz’s life. Through his photographs, he wanted to show people what the transgender community goes through. Rishi followed Naaz for a year, taking pictures of her during the day. The photographs clicked by Rishi were presented at an exhibition in Milan. The editor of Tehelka magazine also participated in the exhibition. They decided to feature Naz on the cover of their magazine. In 2016, Naz became the first transgender to appear on the cover of a magazine. The magazine was titled, “How people like Naz Joshi are changing the way we look at men and women.”
Naz Joshi on the cover of Tehelka magazine in 2016
In the same year, she became the brand ambassador of Miss United Nations.
Naaz Joshi becomes the brand ambassador of Miss United Nations
In 2017 she became the winner of Miss World Diversity pageant. She also became the first trans woman to win the competition against a cisgender woman. He won the same title for three consecutive years.
Naaz Joshi becomes Miss World Diversity 2018
Naaz Joshi becomes Miss World Diversity 2019
In 2018 she became Miss Trans Queen India. She again became the first trans woman to win the contest. In 2019, she was featured in an advertising campaign on Klaren sanitary pads by Cyan Agro Industries and Infrastructure Limited.
Naaz Joshi in his first ad campaign
She won the Miss Universe Diversity crown in August 2020.
Naaz Joshi’s dress at Miss Universe Diversity
In 2021 she won the title of Empress Earth.
Naaz Joshi becomes Miss Empress Earth
Controversy
- In 2019, Naz booked 20 rooms at a hotel for the Queen Universe 2019 pageant, but her booking was canceled on the day of the show. She accused the hotel staff of gender discrimination against her. She claimed that she kept updating the hotel sales manager for two months but when he found out that she was transgender, he canceled the booking. The hotel staff denied all the allegations and said that they needed the RSO’s permission to book 20 rooms for one guest. Naaz had written about this incident on Facebook.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- After completing her studies, Naz worked with former MP Dr. Udit Raj for gender sensitization.
- She has worked on constitutional rights and menstrual hygiene for women’s awareness.
- She is also the brand ambassador of Triton Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
- In 2019, he was invited to TedX in Mathura.
Facts/General Knowledge
- Naaz Joshi has posted pictures of herself drinking alcohol on Instagram.
Photo of Naz Joshi drinking alcohol on Instagram
- In the 2017 Miss World Diversity pageant, contestants were given the task of spending time with children who had been abandoned by their parents. Naaz had a good time with the kids but the other women in the competition were not comfortable talking to the kids. With this Naz won the competition. Even after winning the competition, Naaz did not get much media coverage.
- After winning the Miss World Diversity crown, Naaz was honored by India TV’s famous anchor and editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma.
Naaz Joshi honored by India TV anchor and editor-in-chief Rajat Sharma
- After adopting the girls, Naz had said in an interview that she is happy to be a single mother. He told that the child he adopted belonged to a couple who were about to separate and the child was an IVF baby, so he easily got the custody of the child.
- In 2019 she became a part of the Delhi Queer Pride Rally.
Naz Joshi at Delhi Queer Pride Rally 2019
- In 2020, at the Miss Universe Diversity pageant, Naz went to Mauritius and competed against 14 international contestants. Her competition attire was a blue lehenga and choli and she dressed like a goddess to show women empowerment. Due to the lockdown, the competition was held online and Naaz chose to work on women’s safety.
- The Empress Earth competition was scheduled to be held in Dubai in June but was held online. The contestants were asked to give their opinion about the lockdown. Naz said that lockdown is not an option to fight coronavirus, but people should be more aware and take safety precautions.
- To create awareness about his community, Naz gave speeches at Lovely Professional University and Vellore Institute of Technology in Punjab.
- In an interview, Naz discussed the mental health of transgenders. He said,
Transgender people take a pill called Progynova to save their lives. This pill causes mood swings and gives suicidal thoughts to the person.”
- Naaz had also said in an interview that his mother used to misbehave with him and still beats him and does not allow anyone to meet Naaz.
Naz Joshi’s Instagram post about physical abuse by her mother
- Naaz has talked about his life on TedX.
Naz Joshi in TEDx Talks
- She wants to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi one day.
- In an interview, he gave advice to parents who give birth to a transgender child. He said,
Don’t be afraid of people. Your child is yours. Don’t let them go through trauma. They are already going through trauma in their heart and mind. Don’t aggravate their problem and be strong with them. Stay with them. Stand with them. Let the world know, yes, we are with the family, we are with our children. And I can give you in writing that your children will definitely make you proud. If you leave them, they too can become bar dancers or sex workers like me. They may have to go through suicide attempts like me. So please do not betray your children. Open your arms and embrace them. They are your blood.”
- Naaz likes non-veg food.
Instagram post about Naz Joshi’s eating habits
- He has a peacock tattoo on his back.
Naaz Joshi’s tattoo
- His political inclination is towards Indian National Congress.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn